Reversible car sign



March 1930. E. w. HAVELOCK ET AL REVERSIBLE CAR SIGN Filed Jan. 21, 1929 INVENTORS EWHtLUZOtk and c7. 14 Cochrouze ATTORN EIY Patented Mar. 11, 1930 PATENT OFFKIE EDWARD W. HAVELOCK AND JAMES W. COGHRANE, OF SANTA. ROSA, CALIFORNIA, A-

SIGNORS T NATALINA C. HAVELOCK AND LOUISE M. COCHRANE, BOTH OF SANTA ROSA, CALIFORNIA REVERSIBLE CAR SIGN Application filed January 21, 1929.

This invention relates to signs for railroad cars and particularly to signs for use on tank cars which contain inflammable products. In order to notify and warn the trainmen of the contents of the tanks and to advise when such tanks are empty it is custon'iary to tack 01' otherwise apply placards to the cars which are suitably worded to denote the conditions obtaining at the time, such as Inflammable and Empty. 'lhese placards are of cardboard and when the conditions in a tank are changed from full to empty or vice versa it is necessary to remove one placard and replace another. This consumes considerable time and entails considerable waste in the aggregate since the placards when once used are discarded.

The principal object of our invention therefore is to eliminate the above objectionable and wasteful method by providing a reversible sign, having the required notices on its opposite faces which is of a permanent nature, adapted to be permanently mounted on a car, and adapted to be easily manipulated so as to expose either face to view in but a moments time and without the use of any tool or other accessories being necessary.

A further object of the invention is to produce a simple and inexpensive device and yet one which will be exceedingly effective for the purpose for which it is designed.

These objects we accomplish by means of such structure and relative arrangement of parts as will fully appear by a perusal of the following specification and claims.

In the drawings similar characters of reference indicate corresponding parts in the sev eral views:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of our improved device showing one face of the sign.

Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the device, parts being in section, showing the sign reversed.

Referring now more particularly to the characters of reference on the drawings the device comprises. a rectangular base member 1 of wood or the like which is adapted to be permanently secured to the bed of a tank car in any suitable manner. Fixed on and upstanding from the base is an arched metal bracket 2 of rigid nature which serves as a Serial No. 333,884.

bearing for a vertical upstanding stem 8. On the upper end of this stem just above the bracket is fixed the syn'nnetrically disposed flat shank 4; which is formed at the bottom of a plate 5 of suitable dimensions and of diamond or other convenient shape.

()no one face of the plate the word Empty as at 6 is prominently painted, while on the opposite face is the word Inflammable or the like as at 7, these words being accompanied by such other data and instructions as are customarily placed on these signs, or as are required by Interstate Commerce Commission rules.

Upstanding from the bracket and arranged in diametrally opposed relation to the stem orifice of the bracket are transversely and longitudinally spaced pairs of lugs 8, whose transverse spacing is such as to-receive the lower end of the shank l therebetween on both sides of the stem. Disposed about the stem below the bracket is a compression spring 9, which abuts at its upper end against the under face of the bracket and bears at its lower end against a transverse pin 10 secured in the stem a short distance above the base 1. By means of this arrangement it will be seen that the shank l is yieldably held against the upper face of the bracket and between the lugs, in which case the sign plate is positioned with one face or the other turned toward the front end and there is no tendency for the shank to jump upwardly so as to clear the lugs and cause the sign to be unintentionally reversed, even with the severe vibration and jolting incident to the movement of the car.

To provide additional bearing means for the stem a metal cup 11 is set in the base in which the lower end of the stem is both slidable and turnabl In operation it will be evidentthat all that is necessary to reverse the position of the sign is to pull up on the sign plate against the resistance of the spring, give such plate a half turn and let the same down so that the shank is again engaged by the lugs.

From the foregoing description it will be readily seen that we have produced such a 100 device as substantially fulfills the objects of the invention as set forth herein.

While this specification sets forth in de tail the present andv preferred construction 5 of the device, still in practice such deviations from such detail may be resorted to as do not form a departure from the spirit of the in vention, as defined by the appended. claims.

Having thus described our invention what we claim as new and useful and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A reversible car sign including a vertically disposed fiat sign-plate, a depending extension formed with the plate at the hottom thereof, a stem secured to and depending from said extension, a horizontal bracket plate through which said stem turnably projects; the bottom of the extension resting on the bracket plate, lugs upstanding from the :3 bracket plate on both sides of said extension to prevent rotation thereof, and a spring about the stem below the bracket to hold said extension in yieldable engagement with the bracket.

:5 2. A reversible car sign including a rigid base member to be secured to a car, an arched bracket superimposed on and secured to the base, a stem turnably and slidably mounted in said base and bracket, a sign plate secured an to the stem above the bracket, and spring means on the stem under the bracket acting to resist upward movement of the stem and holding the plate engaged with the bracket.

In testimony whereof we aflix our signatures.

EDWARD 'W. HAVELOCK. JAMES WV. COCHRANE. 

